1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to bicycles and, in particular, concerns one or more headlights to be mounted on the handlebars of a bicycle.
2. Description of the Related Art
Headlights have been used on bicycles for a considerable length of time. Generally, headlights are used to illuminate the intended path of the bicycle in low light conditions. The typical headlight used on a bicycle is comprised of a lamp which mounts on the cross-piece of the handlebars and faces forward. This lamp can either be battery operated or it can be powered by a generator that is attached to one of the wheels. While this type of headlight is commonly used, it suffers from several disadvantages.
In particular, this type of headlight is often very heavy and it also presents a rather bulky appearance positioned on top of the handlebar. Currently, the trend in bicycles is for the accessory equipment to be as light and as streamlined as possible. Hence, the typical prior art headlight is often not aesthetically pleasing due to its rather bulky appearance. While efforts have been made in the prior art to streamline the appearance of bicycle headlights, the fact that these headlights typically include a battery pack necessitates that they be comparatively large in size and project upward from the handlebars.
One possible solution to the problem of unaesthetic bicycle headlights is to mount the headlight in the frame of the bicycle. In the prior art, there is some teaching of mounting the bicycle lights within the handlebars so that the lights produce a beam which projects out of the ends of the handlebars (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,623,954 to Schott et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,247,431 to Liu et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,142 to Spector). However, the prior art discloses positioning lighting apparatuses within the handlebars of bicycles primarily for the purpose of providing a rearward facing safety light. It can be appreciated that a rearward facing safety light does not provide the same benefit to the bicyclist as a forward facing headlight. Further, it is generally desirable to be able to adjust the headlight so that the headlight is illuminating the ground a desired distance in front of the bicyclist. The prior art references that disclose positioning lights within handlebars and other structures of the bicycle are all fixed and are not adjustable.
Hence, there is a need in the prior art for an aesthetically pleasing bicycle headlight assembly that is adjustable so that the bicyclist can adjust the headlight assembly to illuminate the ground a desired distance in front of the bicyclist. To this end, there is a need for a headlight assembly that is capable of providing enough light energy to adequately illuminate the path of the bicycle, and yet is small enough so as to be aesthetically pleasing. Further, this light should be adjustable both up and down and from side to side to allow the bicyclist a tremendous amount of flexibility in adjusting the assembly to produce a light pattern which illuminates the desired region along the path of the bicycle.